Not this month....

I just couldn't do it... I was going to let June pass by with no socks complete. But then around 4 in the afternoon I just couldn't live with myself if I let June slip by. I've been participating in the Sock a Month KAL for 10 months and June will make it 11. I've made a pair each month... and last month did 2 pair. I just couldn't let this month go. I want to make it to a year and beyond, I love socks!







So anyways I CO for these baby socks because I knew I wouldn't be able to finish the adult ones that I've been working on. (I'm doing the Froot loop pattern from knitty.com)



So here are the project stats:

Start Date:June 30th (4pm)
End date: June 30th (9:30pm)
Yarn: Cascade 220
Pattern:Basic sock: 2x2 rib cuff, Sl st heel flap, Stst foot
Needles: Addi turbo US#3, 2 circulars




All in all I think they took only a couple of hours here and there to knit....! I'm happy with them and I'll post pics of them on Chloe's feet in the morning. For now this will have to do.

*Edit*
here they are on her feet... a bit tight....oops! maybe they will be a gift for someone else... who has or will be having a baby boy?!


Oh for those of you on Ravelry.... go check out my latest FO!!! I'm super excited about it. For those of you who are not on Ravelry I'll be posting about it here in a week or so after I gift it to a friend... you just have to be patient!

last friday...

Alright so where did i leave off?!....



Oh yeah, going to see Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, aka The Yarn Harlot! We left town around 2 in the afternoon. Meaning plenty of sunlight for car ride knitting:O) (Thanks to Amy who drove) I worked on a present for a friend. (i think she reads this blog, from time to time, so I'll leave it a secret for now. but you can go and see it on ravelry....) here is a picture of me in the back seat!








We did get into some traffic, some stop and go for a little bit. Amy decided it was OK to grab her kitting and knit a bit while we were stopped:O) Paulette didn't like that so much, so it didn't last that long;O)













We made it to Chicago in time to check out the knitting shop that was sponsoring the harlot happenings and went out to eat at a fun little deli called Potbelly. I liked the name quite a bit! then we went to the hotel and got good seats (about 5 rows back).








We met lots of other knitters and saw lots of beautiful knits! This picture is from the back of the room before it filled up... I think it was almost full to the brim when it actually started.



I worked on my SPSS socks and got a good inch or two done on them throughout the whole event.






Now the part we were all waiting on.... Stephanie! and she took pictures of us, like she always dose, and I took one of her, bad lighting though, sorry about that.

She was great to hear speak, I had lots of laughs, and she was encouraging too! It was nice to put a voice to her blog and books, and to get a real sense of her personality, not just on paper.





Then there was the book signing. I think we waited about an hour and a half, but it was a good time where we talked and knitted with others. So it didn't seem like that long. We actually met a knitter who came from Canada ( her husband on a business trip) and she came to see the yarn harlot. What a sweet person she was! She( Mary Jane) was pictured on The Yarn Harlot's blog! Here we are and I'm holding her sock!

After it was all over we hit a Starbucks and headed for home. I'm glad it wasn't me who was driving because I hit the seat and passed out for the last two hours.... (thanks again Amy for driving!) We made it home around 1am. Fun times!

UFO~ no more!

It is done! yippee! *me doing the happy its finished dance*











Project stats

Start date: 2006
End date: June 18th 2008
Yarn: Rowan All Season Cotton
Pattern: Mom's zip-up hoody
Needles: US #7 and #8
Recipient: ME!!!

check it out on my ravelry page







Now let me tell you about getting a zipper. Not installing it, buying it. The pattern calls for a dual separating 22" zipper.... Well you can't find those anywhere. I went to any and every craft type of store in the area and couldn't find one. They had lots of them at 26" and up and some around 9" and under... but no 22". Oi. I was bummin. But the only reason it calls for the dual separating zipper is for pregnancy purposes, so you can unzip it to fit a large belly under there. So I gave up after looking on line at about 20 different places. I could custom order one but I didn't want to pay an arm and a leg.






I basted the normal zipper in place and called my friend Paulette to bring over her sewing machine. Before she came over my friend Katie stopped by... she had a bag full of close that she didn't wear and wanted to know if I wanted any of them. As I'm going through the pile of close I pull out an old jean jacket, i don't think much of it. Then i notice its zipper..... a 22" dual separating zipper! No way! Right then and there I thanked God for it. there was no other possible way it could have happened. It was a little gift form God to show he cares about me and the things I care about. How awesome He is!









So I ripped off the other zipper and took out the zipper i needed form the jacket and basted that one to my sweater! Paulette showed up in the middle of all the zipper happenings, and we were all amazed at God's goodness.






Then I got to work. I sewed slowly and cautiously and installed my very first zipper! It turned out pretty well (for my first one anyways)!










I hand sewed in the other side of the zipper, so it will lay nice and flat!







I love my sweater... so much!








Oh... today Amy, Paulette and I are going to see the Yarn Harlot!!!

Give me a Z

give me a I
give me a P
give me a P
give me a E
give me a R













What does that spell? ZIPPER!












That is all that is in my way of this 3 year old UFO!!!!


I finished weaving in the ends on Sunday, and seamed it together on Monday... I love it and can't wait until its completely finished!

Hmmm now to master the art of zipper installation.... Hopefully I'll update you all soon with a FO report!






P.S.
my house is super clean(and officially for sale)! Lets just hope I can keep it that way:O) For those who want to know, we have just out grown out house... all of the kids are in one bedroom, which is fine for a few more years but soon Gabe will need to be on his own. So we thought we'd give selling it a try...

rain

rain rain go away come again another day... like in the middle of summer when we will need it...














look at my poor garden....















and my poor backyard......














and my feet... about 2 inches of standing water. oi!



Its been raining for about a week and it is going to rain all next week too.

long time gone

edit* sorry for all of you who already read this post... I forgot to do all the links... they are here now....


Where do I start.... well, yesterdays and today I made this:

Project Stats:
Start date: June 5th
End date: June 6th
Yarn: cotton classic
Pattern: Flower Pacifier Clip
(from the itty-bitty nursery book/this was a free pattern)
Needles: US #3
Recipient: a friend's new baby girl!









super cute, i love it. Chloe modeling it for you all:O)



I went to visit her in the hospital earlier today, that baby is one cute little peanut!






Lets see... I don't even know where to start.









1~ I got 4 garbage bags full of wool, fleece in the raw, meaning I need to pick through it (the vegetable matter and poop) then wash it and decide weater or not I want to card it myself or send it out. With the help of some friends have done a little bit so far...

this picture on the left,and right too, is only one bag... I have a lot of work ahead of me!













2~ I spun up some mohair and wool blended roving. It was so easy to spin, it just slipped though my fingers effortlessly. It practically spun itself. love it. I now have about 573 yards of this yarn.













3~ I'm still alive in Sock Wars... but haven't gotten my SIP's yet... i don't really care anymore and wish my socks would just come and kill me. I'm sick of the waiting.

4~ Joe and I decided that I no longer have to work, once summer is over I'll be a full SAHM!

5~ We have also decided to homeschool this coming year, I'm a bit anxious about that.




6~ I joined a swap, yes another one:O) This one is through ravelry's christian knitter and crocheter's group. Its a Secret Prayer Sock Swap II, I'm excited about it!

7~ I didn't have any yarn that I thought my pal would truly love so I ordered some... (from ruby sapphire yarns i got a discount for being in the swap!) and some for me;O) really I couldn't decide which one she would like so I ordered all 3 and picked one for her when they came to my door. All lovely.








8~ this is the one I picked for her.





9~ I'm still weaving in ends on my sweater... but the good news is that I only have one arm's worth of ends to go!!! I'm almost done!

10~ We've decided to put our house up for sale... the Realtor came over to day to get all the specks of the house and hopefully by early next week we'll be good to go!

11~ I'm now realizing that I'm going to have to keep my house super clean and DE-CLUTTERED... please pray for me ;O) With 3 little ones its going to be chalanging.





12~ We got a new stove last week! it has a convection fan in it! and a glass top, easy cleaning.




13~ We planted most of our garden, everything except the tomatoes that we started from seed we saved from last year





14~ My baby is growing up... and that makes me sad.



15~ We also got a new vacuum, a Dyson. It works really well!







16~ I had lots of fun at my LYS sheering days/open house. I convinced them to give one of the llama's a mohawk:O)




17~ I think that's it... or at least that is all I can think of.